A Knight and Her Princess
by Yuri-hime
Summary: A dashing Knight...a Princess set to be wedded off...toss in dragon-slaying, a smart-aleck partner, a thirst for adventure, and you have a classic love story...told Rizzoli and Isles style.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer** - I do not own Rizzoli and Isles~

**Author's Note** - So, in the vain of truly great AUs out there like _Tribute_, I decided to write an AU Rizzles of my own =3  
I hope you all enjoy it, and please let me know if you would like it to be continued ^_^

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**~A Knight and Her Princess~**

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"Dammit, Frost! When you said you wanted to slay a _dragon_, you really truly meant you wanted to slay a DRAGON!" a dark-haired, dark-eyed woman cried out as she dodged left, to quickly escape the molten fire breath of the great beast that was bearing rapidly down on her.

"Of course I meant slay an actual _dragon_, Jane! The scales from these things are worth a _fortune_. You know the King's Knights use them to fashion dragon armour. Pretty sturdy stuff, and it lasts for a small lifetime," a handsome, dark-skinned young man replied as he dodged right and attempted to circle around the giant beast, in an attempt to try stabbing it in the side with his sword.

"Frost...if we somehow manage to live through this...I'm going to wring your damn neck!" Jane, mercenary-for-hire, exclaimed with a loud cry as she charged the beast with her blade raised high.

Frost just grinned brightly at his partner as they both charged in, swords held high, to end the life of the fire-spewing beast before them.

~o~o~o~

Meanwhile, in a great fortress castle several miles away, a young woman of beauty and grace sat in her tower room, gazing listlessly out her tower window. She breathed a great sigh of sadness and loneliness, as she watched fire spew into the air several miles off, and trees rattle and shake causing birds to take flight. She could tell a great battle was taking place not too far away. Probably a dashing rouge fighting and slaying a mighty beast. Oh, how she _wished_ she could be down there with all the action.

Being born a Princess while it came with all the prerequisite riches and royal standing, also meant that she was also essentially held prisoner for most of her life. Her father especially _never_ allowed her to go out with the as-he-called-them 'common folk'. He also never allowed her to partake in the more 'fun' activities she watched other young people enjoy like archery, swordplay, or even simply learning how to ride a horse. He preferred to have his daughter and wife escorted everywhere by royal carriage. It became quite tedious, and made her feel separate and apart from the people who were supposed to be essentially 'hers'.

The young woman released another deep sigh, and lightly ran a delicate hand through her honey-blond hair, as she watched the action a few miles off seem to finally calm down.

_I bet they finally slew the beast,_ she thought to herself with a small smile. _Oh, how wonderful and amazing it would be to be able to fight and slay dragons. Or to at least be allowed to leave this wretched castle every once in a while, and go out and explore the world out there,_ she thought wistfully to herself as she settled down onto her bed, and picked up the knitting that her father had 'approved' for her to do. She stared down at the partially-stitched item in her hands, then threw it back down onto her bed in disgust. She just _had_ to get out of this castle...somehow...someway...

"Maura _darling_, have you finished that garment for your betrothed yet?" an older woman asked, as she breezed into the tower bedroom. "Why darling, you've barely even started! Prince Garrett will be _so_ disappointed if you don't present him with a gift before your upcoming nuptials," the Queen of the Realm, Constance, exclaimed as she daintily took a seat on the bed beside her daughter.

"But Mother, I don't _want_ to marry Garrett. I've told you this _dozens_ of times already," Maura replied with a slightly-annoyed huff.

"Oh nonsense darling, every young woman wants to marry Garrett. He's the Prince of the neighbouring Kingdom. You _know_ how these things work. To solidify our two Realms, there needs to be an arranged marriage. Now don't worry, my darling. I didn't love your father at first either when _my_ marriage was arranged to him, but I've grown to love and adore him over the years," Constance replied, as she gently ran her fingers through her daughter's hair.

Maura let out a deep sigh of resignation, and turned her gaze back towards her window...wondering if the dashing rogue had survived the day...and wishing with every fiber of her being that she could have been out there with that person, risking life and limb and truly _living_ life.

~o~o~o~

"I swear Frost, if I don't somehow manage to get this dragon _gunk_ out of my hair by nightfall, I'm coming at _your_ hair with a dull, pointy razor and shaving you bald!" Jane exclaimed in disgust, as she tried unsuccessfully to rid her hair and second-hand armour of dried dragon blood and guts.

Frost just flashed his friend a bright grin from atop the horse that ambled alongside his partner's, as it slowly pulled along the wagon that held a small fortune in dragon scales, that they'd skinned from the great beast after they'd killed it.

"Oh, come on, partner. We hit it _big_ this time! We'll _never_ have to do something like this _ever_ again after we present this bounty to the King. He'll shower us in gold and jewels after we show all this mighty fine dragon scale to him," Frost answered with a grin, as he looked up at the imposing castle gates he and Jane were finally drawing close to.

"Yeah well...I _still_ don't appreciate dragon blood and guts running down my back. Do you know how _long_ it takes to get this stuff out of your chain-mail?" Jane grumbled, as she tried to pluck a bit of dragon bits from the front of her armour.

Frost just laughed...a clear happy sound that bounced off the castle walls, and drew the attention of the young woman sitting idly by her tower window. When she looked down and saw the approaching riders pulling the wagon of dragon scales, which glistened in the fading light of the setting sun, a soft breath of excitement escaped her. She quickly made her way out of her room, to hurry down to the King's public court, where the riders would be sure to present their bounty before the King.

Maura quickly snuck behind one of the large, lavish, deep-purple curtains her father had hanging all around the public court...a place she had used as a hiding spot since she was very young, to be able to glimpse the many different types of people who always sought an audience with her father. She watched as her 'dashing rogue' entered the room, carrying a few choice pieces of dragon scale, as the wagon and horses would have been left out in the outer court. And Maura just _knew_ that it was the rogue she had been fantasizing about earlier, because there had been no other activity in the realm that looked like a battle between man and beast, than the one she'd witnessed from her bedroom window earlier in the day. What _did_ surprise and indeed shocked her, was the fact that her 'dashing rogue'...was in fact a _dashing woman_. She was dressed in slightly-bloodied chain-mail, an undershirt, and breeches. An effort to scrub free most of the blood had obviously been made, but to Maura the sight of the still-slightly bloodied woman, striding confidently and in fact a bit arrogantly into her father's court, with the dragon scales held up proudly in her arms, caused Maura to engage in something she had always looked down upon other maidens for engaging in...she _swooned_.

"Presenting His Royal Highness, the Great and Mighty Ruler of the Realm, King Patrick!" the royal court herald exclaimed loudly, as a man dressed in the finest clothes with a fur-lined purple cloak, swept into the room and took his place at the only seat in the room...a throne held high on a raised stone platform.

"You may step forward now, and present your gift to the King!" the herald cried out causing Jane's ears to twitch at the man's extraordinary volume. She was already missing Frost's company as he was _way_ better at this 'formal' stuff than she was, but he was watching the rest of their precious cargo out in the outer court, so she was on her own in here.

"Your...ah, Royal Highness...I come bearing...gifts," Jane said as she tried to go down in an awkward bow, while still keeping a firm grip on the pile of dragon scales in her arms.

King Patrick's hazel eyes lit up when he saw the small bounty the mercenary was carrying. He made a small motion with his hand for a guard to step forward, and inspect the scales to make sure that they were _real_. Once the guard had looked over the scales he went to a full bow before the King, and declared that the dragon scales were indeed real.

King Patrick's other eyebrow slowly rose, as he contemplated to himself that dragon scales were _extremely_ hard to come by...going by the fact that one actually had to _slay_ a living, breathing dragon in order to get them.

_Perhaps I can make this woman a Knight for my daughter. Someone this brave and fierce would make a **fine** protector for my precious, little one. And Maura **does** seem to truly dislike all the male Knights surrounding her all the time. Let's see if I can't perhaps...**persuade** this woman to become my daughter's Protector,_ King Patrick thought to himself with a small hidden smile.

"Oh great and mighty warrior, it is with great pleasure that I invite you to a feast this night, in honor of your brave deed in slaying a dragon, and bringing it's precious hide to me!" the King declared, and with a single loud clap of his hands servants seemed to suddenly appear around Jane. One immediately took the dragon scales from her, while another pulled out a bit of thick twine to 'measure' Jane's breeches, while yet another tried reaching for her arm to lead her from the room.

Maura watched all of this happen with great interest, and had to stifle a giggle as the woman artfully dodged all the reaching hands, except the one taking the dragon scales from her.

_She's quick, this one. She'll make a **perfect** Knight for my daughter,_ King Patrick thought to himself with a self-satisfied smile.

"Ahh...excuse me, Your Majesty...I don't mean to be impolite...but my _partner_ and I were hoping to be paid in gold and jewels. A feast sounds great and all but...uhh...we _really_ would prefer the gold and jewels," Jane stated as she artfully dodged another reaching hand, and planted herself rigidly before the King. She hadn't just risked her life taking down a damn _dragon_ of all things, just to be handed a meal. She wanted riches dammit! That was the usual going reward for slaying dragons after all.

A small flutter in a curtain to the King's right suddenly drew Jane's attention. She glanced curiously in that direction and saw a wave of curly, golden-blond hair quickly disappear into the darkness behind the curtain. Her attention was brought quickly back towards the King however, when he let out a loud laugh and stood with a pleased clap of his hands.

"But of course, my dear. You _and_ your partner shall have your riches..._much_ more than I believe you realize," the King proclaimed with a sly smile on his face, as he imagined the woman before him all cleaned up, and dressed in the finest Knight's armour. "But first, you simply _must_ dine with us tonight. I _insist_. A great and mighty deed as amazing as slaying a dragon deserves a fitting celebration. Guards, please see to it that the rest of the dragon scales are collected, cleaned, and work begun on creating the _best_ armour with them. And please escort my dinner guest's partner waiting outside in as well, so that both may get cleaned up in time for the feast," the King commanded as he swept from the room, leaving Jane with no choice but to _allow_ herself to be escorted out by the guards, to where Frost no doubt would be taken as well.

Another quick movement from the curtains once again grabbed her attention, and this time Jane caught sight of the most stunning, amazing pair of hazel-green and gold eyes she'd ever seen. She nearly tripped over her own feet when she saw them, and an amused giggle gently floated to her ears before she was led from the room, towards a bathhouse where she was undoubtedly expected to clean and dress for the feast 'in her honour'.

Just what had she...and by all rights _Frost _with his crazy dragon-slaying ideas...gotten her into this time?

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_To be continued?_ ^_^


	2. Chapter 2

**Author's Note** - I hope people are still interested in this story ^.^  
I received a mild 'poke' to get this story moving again, if I wanted to retain people's interest. So, I hope that you all enjoy this new chapter~ =3

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"She's wonderful, Bass! Simply stunning. Such strength and courage resides in her. I can easily tell. Just by the way she strides...her swagger...and the way she didn't even look remotely cowed by my Father. Oh Bass, I do so hope I get the chance to truly talk with her, before she leaves to continue her travels. What adventures she could tell!" Maura could barely contain her excitement, as she spoke to her tiny pet tortoise 'Bass', whom she kept hidden away in a little open-air pen in the corner of her expansive closet. She knew her parents _knew_ that she had a small, baby tortoise. She also knew that her Mother _especially_ hated her having what she would deem a 'filthy little creature' living in her room. But her Father condoned it, in the sense that her Mother had yet to tell her to remove Bass. Even though her Father _was_ strict and wildly over-protective, Maura knew she could get away with certain small things with him. After all, she _was_ her Father's one and only precious daughter, and he'd do practically anything to make her happy...anything of course, except go off on wild adventures with dashing rogues, instead of marrying an arrogant, conceited Prince.

Maura let out a soft sigh, then leaned forward to press a soft kiss against the shell of her one and only true friend, whom she was holding in the palm of her hand.

"I better get ready for dinner, Bass. I want to have as much time together as possible with that rogue and her partner, before they go on their way," Maura said to her little friend as she gently placed him back into his small habitat. Sometimes being a Princess to one of the most powerful and wealthy Kings in the country, had its advantages. She'd been able to purchase Bass from a merchant, who's trade was the import and sale of exotic creatures. A tortoise like Bass would _never_ have been found in her country, as he was an African spurred tortoise, found on shores far far away from her own.

She had her own dinars of course, which was the currency her country used. So, she'd bought Bass while her parents were occupied...which they always were considering they _were_ the ruling King and Queen...and smuggled him away to her room. She'd also purchased from the merchant a small booklet, that had detailed Bass's care and feeding requirements.

He was _very_ partial to strawberries.

Once again being the wealthy daughter to a wealthy King came in handy for her, as in this instance she would _never_ have been able to afford Bass's meals if she'd been..._less_ financially able. Things like strawberries and the certain leaves he ate, were not easy or cheap to come by. But there was a 'specialty' foods and fruits merchant within their Kingdom also, and Maura had become one of his most valued customers.

There was also a merchant who sold books...those wonderful sheaves of paper, filled with wondrous words bound in oiled leather, which were almost as rare and difficult to come by as dragon scales. Purchase of books in her Kingdom was not cheap. Because of their rarity, their prices were far above what the common citizen could ever hope to afford. Her Father was a good King, and did his best to ensure that his people didn't go hungry. But the people still would rather spend the majority of of their hard-earned dinars on caring for and raising their families.

So, once again Maura was the most valued customer of one of her Kingdom's merchants.

"I wonder if that rogue can read, Bass. It's not the easiest or cheapest skill to acquire, and I seriously doubt she'd need to know such a thing, while she's charging around doing things like slaying dragons," Maura mused quietly to her pet tortoise, who just continued to studiously nibble away at the leafy greens in his small pen.

Maura allowed a small smile to play at the corners of her lips as she left Bass to his meal, and went to the royal bathhouse to wash up for dinner.

~o~o~o~

"Frost, I'm telling you we _have_ to get out of this Kingdom as soon as we can. I don't trust that old King. He's a crafty one. I can see it in his eyes. He's got something planned for us, and I don't mean this so-called dinner in our 'honour'. He's practically forcing us to attend," Jane groused loudly to her partner, who was taking a bath on the other side of the stone wall, separating the male and female bathhouses.

Frost just allowed himself to sink further down into the warm, lightly-scented water he was relaxing in, while leaning his head back against the side of the stone bath's edge.

"Jane relax, you're taking what's a simple invitation to dinner...and a damn _amazing_ bath that we _earned_ with all that dragon scale...as some kind of clandestine ulterior motive of the King. The man just wants to reward us for bringing him all that fine treasure," Frost murmured lightly under his breath, as he allowed his body to sink a bit further down into the soothing water. This was by far the single _best_ bath he'd _ever_ had in his life, and as much as he loved his partner like family, he was _not_ going to waste this opportunity for a good soak.

Jane scowled a bit at the wall separating her from her partner, before she let out a resigned sigh.

Maybe Frost was right.

Maybe the King was just...overly pushy. After all, one didn't become ruler of an entire Kingdom by being soft. Maybe he _really_ did just want to show his appreciation for the dragon scales. But her gut was tingling...and whenever it did _that_ she _knew_ she better pay attention to it. The old codger _was_ up to something. Jane could feel it in her bones, and that same feeling had gotten her out of enough scrapes and close calls in her life, that she'd learned to listen to it _every_ time. She couldn't do anything about their situation right now, and she really _did_ want Frost to enjoy what was probably the single greatest bath he'd ever had in his life...hell it was the best _she'd_ ever had. She just wasn't able to relax and enjoy it like her partner, because of all the anxious energy running through her body.

Jane decided that as soon as the dinner was done, she and Frost would ask for their reward _again_, and then they would take their leave. She had absolutely _no_ interest in getting wrapped up in whatever scheme the King probably had in store for them.

Jane took in and released a deep breath as she finally allowed her body to relax into the warm water, now that she'd worked out a plan of action.

Get their pay, then get out. That was the plan, and one that she fully intended to stick to. The vision of shimmering hazel-green eyes filled with teasing mirth, slipped into her mind as she allowed her body to sink further down into the warm water.

_I wonder if I'll get to meet the owner of those beautiful eyes_...Jane wondered to herself with a small grin, as she closed her eyes and fully surrendered herself to this one..._truly earned_...luxury._  
_

~o~o~o~

"I now present His Highness King Patrick, his Majestic Lady Queen Constance, and their Glorious Daughter Princess Maura. All Rise and Hail the Royal Isles Family!" the court herald cried at the top of his lungs, and Jane _just_ managed to stifle the sigh that wanted to slip through her lips, at the man's incessantly loud voice.

_They **must** feed him chicken eggs or something every morning, for him to gain the vocal muscle strength needed, to pull off that kind lung power off each day,_ Jane thought dourly to herself, as she stood up from the massive dining table she'd been sitting at beside Frost. They had both been decked out in the finest Knight's armour, and Jane found that because they were truly designed for male warriors, she was chafing a bit at the neck. But she _did_ have to admit that she and Frost looked damned good in the armour, and she wondered briefly if the King would allow her and Frost to keep them when they left.

_He's now got a ton of dragon armour plating, so he should at least be able to part with these two for me and Frost,_ Jane thought to herself as her eyes went to the front of the room, to watch the Royal Family enter the large and lavishly furnished dining room. Her eyes quickly slid passed both the King and Queen and immediately took up residence on the most angelic, beautiful face she'd ever seen in her life. And she'd traveled to _many_ places throughout the many realms, and the stunning vision standing before her now, far surpassed any and all beauty she'd seen previously.

Her heart shook and vibrated in her chest...gently rattling the bars that were so solidly wrapped around it.

"She's a vision..." Jane found herself whispering, as eyes the colour of shimmering jade and golden honey, flashed quickly and shyly over to her before just as quickly looking away.

_Those were the eyes!_ The same eyes that had peeked at her earlier, from behind the heavy purple curtain in the King's public court.

"Yeah, you're right, Jane. She _is_ a vision..." Frost whispered back with a soft hum of approval.

Jane stole a quick glance at her partner, and then slowly lowered her eyes in a slight glower. Frost caught the look out of the corner of his eye, then so quickly if one weren't looking they'd miss it, he flashed her a completely unrepentant grin, before going back to watching the royal family take their seats at the head of the table.

Jane sat down and chanced another quick glance at the stunning Princess, before she focused her attention on the King who had just cleared his throat to draw all attention to himself. He led off by thanking her and Frost, for the precious and rare gift of the dragon scales. He then promised them that they would be given their reward in the morning, as by his reasoning it was _much_ too late right now to open the Royal Treasury.

Jane gritted her teeth and _just_ kept from 'commenting' on the King's 'reasoning', only because Frost placed a hand on her armour-covered leg, and none-so-gently pressed down to get her to keep her mouth shut. Jane let out a faint huff under her breath, and just concentrated on eating her meal while trying _not_ to pay attention to the fact, that the Princess kept sending what she surely believed were surreptitious glances her way.

Jane tried to keep an amused and slightly-flattered grin off her face, as she continued to dig into the veal that was surrounded by every other kind of food imaginable on her plate. Truly she and Frost were being treated like royalty themselves this day between the bath, the armour, and now the lavish dinner. But for all the 'trappings' that these royals for whatever reason were heaping on her and her partner, Jane still just wanted to _leave_. She just wanted to get back out on the open road, heading wherever the wind blew, or wherever adventure called. _That_ was her life and her passion, and she just hoped that this King wouldn't keep holding her and Frost up for too much longer.

"My dear Jane, I have a bit of a business proposition for you," King Patrick suddenly stated, as he lightly wiped a bit of rich gravy from his lips.

Jane's head immediately snapped up and she chanced a quick glance over at Frost, to see that her partner was also paying hawk-like attention to what the King was now saying. The look Jane sent Frost was one that plainly said, _I **told** you something was up with this King. He **wants** something from us._

Frost frowned slightly as he quickly interpreted Jane's look, then re-focused all his attention on the King.

Maura was now also paying close and careful attention to her Father. He was up to something. She knew all his mannerisms; all the small movements of his face and body, that gave away his every word and action. She was _very_ good at doing that...reading other people. It was a skill she'd developed from countless hours spent watching the many people who came in day-after-day, to either seek favour with the King or to conduct business with him. And now she could see it as plain as day...her father was about to ask the rogue and her partner for something...something _big_. And she could tell by the rogue's rigid posture and expression, that she also suspected that this would be no ordinary business proposition. Her entire body just telegraphed the intense desire to _leave_.

Her father wasted no further time in getting to his point, now that he'd begun speaking.

"Jane...Frost...I want you both to become Knights of my Kingdom. And Jane you especially, I would like for you to become my daughter's personal Knight."

Maura felt all the air in her lungs rush out, and she could tell by the similarly stunned expression on her mother's face, that she'd had absolutely no idea her husband was going to ask this.

Jane sat up ram-rod straight as the requests filtered in through her ears, and penetrated straight through to her brain. She turned slightly to give Frost a quick hard look, and she didn't need to actually hear his opinion to know that he would agree with her current thoughts perfectly. Jane turned back towards the royal family; the powerful, confident stature of the King; the elegant though surprised look of the Queen; and finally those beautiful golden-green eyes of the Princess, who was looking back at her with a curious tilt of her head...all of them waiting for her and Frost's answer.

Jane took in and released a long, deep breath before she squared her jaw, and looked the King straight in the eye as she gave her answer.

"No."

~o~o~o~

"Please..._please_ don't do this...please don't do this..." the soft voice of a female whimpered tearfully, as a thick piece of twine was wrapped firmly around her wrists, and she was shoved unceremoniously down onto her small pallet bed. The agonized, muffled cries of her husband reached her ears, as a sinister shadow fell over her body. She turned tearful eyes towards her cloth-gagged and chair-bound husband, and tears of despair and remorse fell steadily from her eyes.

There was no hope for them.

They both lived in a little farm cottage on the outskirts of the Isles Kingdom, and there wasn't another soul for miles around. Even if she tried screaming again...she'd learned _very_ quickly not to do that after the first attempt...that no one would hear to come to their rescue. She and her husband...they were both going to die...she could see the agonized realization and resignation of that fact in her husband's eyes.

She only hoped that it would be quick.

_Oh please dear Creator, let it be quick...let it be quick_...the woman cried deep within her soul, as the dark figure above her pressed down like a shadow of death...then swooped down and devoured her whole.

~o~o~o~

Charles Hoyt was a very satisfied man. He was a very satisfied man indeed.

He ran the wet-stone-sharpened edge of his blade lightly across his tongue...tasting, to him, the sweet flavour of fear and passion. How opportune for him to have come across this lovely couple, just sitting here waiting for him to come visit.

And visit he had. Especially with the wife. He'd visited her again...and again...and again. Enough so that eventually she could take no more. And then when he'd had his _fun_ with her, he'd then moved onto the husband who was openly weeping now; breath muffled behind the dirty, dingy cloth that had been stuffed into his mouth. Hoyt had then brought the husband into the fun, but he was fairly quick with the man. Just a simple, clean cut that resembled a lovely smiling face across his neck.

Another work of art for him.

Yes, it had been a _very_ satisfying day indeed. And very soon his days would become even _more_ satisfying, as Hoyt had made himself a plan. It was his most delicious plan devised yet. He was quite pleased with himself in fact, at his own genius.

The marriage of Princess Maura to Prince Garrett would be happening soon. Very soon, in fact. And once it did, Hoyt would have the _perfect_ wedding present for them both. They would become his greatest masterpiece to date.

_And there wasn't a soul alive who could stop him._

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**AN** - I'm doing my very best with this story, so please review and let me know what you think of it, thanks~ =3


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